By Mayor Charles McNeilly
Welcome to my City of Rockaway Beach Monthly Update with a look back at the month of December, 2024.
With 2024 in the rear-view mirror, it is a great time to reflect on another amazing year in Rockaway Beach. City Manager Shepard summarizes the City government’s activities and achievements in his 2024 Year in Review Message. Please take the time to read his message; you will not be disappointed.
City Hall
Last week City Manager Shepard received the executed financing agreement with Business Oregon for the Nedonna Beach Watermain project. With this in hand, the City is now free to solicit proposals for engineering and construction management services. The request for proposals (RFP) will go live in various publications by January 1, 2025. If all goes well, the City will have an engineering firm under contract by mid-March 2025, subject to City Council approval.
Finance Director Marni Johnson expects to receive the 2023/24 Audit any day now. She will post it online under the Finance Department page as soon as it is received. Your City leadership continues to manage the City finances well.
Fire Department and Emergency Preparation
Santa Claus arrived by Fire Truck at the fire station Saturday, December 14 for pictures, cookies, coffee, hot chocolate, door prizes, and fire truck rides for a wonderful evening of community. Thanks to the Rockaway Beach Fire and Rescue and the Rockaway Beach Business Association volunteers for making it a success yet again.
The monthly emergency preparedness meeting was held with a guest speaker from the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI). He spoke about the unique geology of the Oregon Coast, coastal waves, and Tsunami’s. Please consider attending the monthly emergency preparedness meetings to increase your emergency preparedness held on the first Wednesday of each month. However, January’s meeting will be on January 8th because of the New Year’s day holiday.
The Emergency Preparedness Team opened the Warming Center at City Hall during the December 26th power outage providing warmth, power to charge electronics, Wi-Fi, warm beverages, light snacks, and companionship. Emergency Preparedness opens the Warming Center eight hours after the onset of a power outage. A big thank you to the team for making the outage more tolerable for our community.
Advisory Committee
Our Sourcewater Protection Plan Development Advisory Committee (SPPDAC) is scheduled to hold its next meeting on January 21, 9:30-11:30.
Planning Department
The City will host an open house in February that will focus on the southernmost segment of the Rockaway Beach section of the Salmonberry Trail. One of our project partners would like feedback from the community on an alternative alignment between Washington St. and S. 3rd Ave. More to come on this later this month.
Planning Commission
At the December Planning Commission meeting they held a public hearing on Variance 24-3: Consideration of an Application for Variance at 282 South Anchor Street to Decrease the Number of Required Parking Spaces to Construct a New Mixed-Use Building. After hearing staff reports and testimony, a request from the public was made to keep the record open for an additional 10 days. The commission is now scheduled to deliberate on the application at their January 16th meeting.
Also, at December’s Planning Commission meeting, we said goodbye to commissioner Zandra Umholtz. She will be stepping down to focus on her new volunteer role in our Fire Department, and the next round of EMT trainings that will begin in January. Thank you, Zandra, for all your years of service on the Planning Commission.
Public Works
Progress continues at the wayside beach access project. Concrete “flat work” kicked off with sidewalk pours. The contractor will work for the next few weeks on handrails and to reinstall benches, and then open access to the public. Installation of the water fountains and foot washing stations will be delayed due to manufacturing issues.
During the December 26th power outage, Public Works deployed portable generators to lift and pump stations around Rockaway Beach to keep the sewer and water systems working for you. I know we all appreciate our hard-working Public Works staff.
City Council
At our December Council Workshop, Council …
- Discussed the Site Host Agreement with EV Charging Solutions for Electric Vehicle Charging Stations at Anchor Street Parking Lot.
- Reviewed a Resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute the safe drinking water revolving loan fund grant contract.
- Reviewed Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC) license renewals.
- Discussed proposal from Tillamara regarding overflow parking.
At our December Council Meeting, Council …
- Deliberated then voted to deny Land Use Appeal 24-1 Nedonna Wave Planned Unit Development Phase 2.
- Amended our (Zoning Ordinance 143 Section 4.050) Sign Requirements so that the City can install an electronic messaging center in front of City Hall.
- Adopted a Public Meeting Law Grievance Policy
- Approved the revised Community Grant Program
- Authorized our City Manager to execute the safe drinking water revolving loan fund grant contract for forest management planning and appraisal for the Jetty Creek Watershed
- Approved the updated memorandum of understanding among participants of the Jetty Creek Working Group
- Reviewed and evaluated the employment performance of our City Manager; then approved the City Manager’s Performance Evaluation Annual Summary. Our City Council rated our City Manager’s job performance exceptional … overall 4.78 on a five-point scale.
- Authorized amendment to the base rate compensation for our City Manager.
Tillamook Coast Visitors Association (TCVA)
The number of visitors to Rockaway Beach’s official tourist website (visitrockawaybeach.org) increased 33% in 2024 over 2023. The site also had a 130% increase in direct hits in 2024 over 2023 from the distribution of the new QR Code stickers.
TCVA’s partnership with Portland Monthly resulted in 1,741 direct clicks to our article and 1,567 direct clicks to our official tourist website. These are potential new visitors who may never have been exposed to Rockaway Beach. Overall, our message was seen over 124K times!
TCVA’s partnership with Seattle Met resulted in 1,264 direct clicks to our article. These are potential new visitors who may never have been exposed to Rockaway Beach. Overall, our message was seen over 38k times!
Also, B-Line is covering the Portland downtown area with signs on their delivery trikes promoting Rockaway Beach.
Key Dates in January for Community Engagement
The January Emergency Preparedness meeting has been moved to February, with details to be determined.
The City Council Workshop is Wednesday, January 15th at 4:30 pm in the City Hall 2nd Floor Conference Room followed by the City Council Meeting at 6:00 pm downstairs in the City Hall Council Room. The Council meetings were moved to the third Wednesday due to the holidays.
The Planning Commission meeting is Thursday, January 16th at 5:00 pm in the City Hall Council Room.
The Sourcewater Protection Plan Development Advisory Committee (SPPDAC) is scheduled to hold its next meeting on Tuesday, January 21st at 9:30 am in the City Hall 2nd Floor Conference Room.
The Coffee with Manager and Mayor is Thursday, January 23rd at 9:00 am in the City Hall 2nd Floor Conference Room.
Please stay informed and engaged!
The most efficient way to keep up to date on your City government is to add your email address to the City’s email list through the City’s website, at the bottom of landing page.
If you have ideas to share; questions or concerns about what is going on in the City of Rockaway Beach, please email me at charlesforrockawaybeachmayor@gmail.com.
I wish you all a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2025 and …
I am still listening.
